


at the light, at the light, at the light

by seemeeimbeebee



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Coming Out, Father-Daughter Relationship, Gen, LGBTQ Character, Regina and Zelena co-parented baby Robin, Time Travel, True Love's Kiss, minor alice/robin pairing, the use of irony in this fic is both painful and palpable
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-02
Updated: 2017-12-02
Packaged: 2019-02-09 09:17:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12884787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seemeeimbeebee/pseuds/seemeeimbeebee
Summary: Robyn gets to meet her father. Just once.





	at the light, at the light, at the light

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, all! I've had this fic stuck in my brain basically since Robin Hood died. I had a really hard time getting my ideas down on the page, until they recently announced that they had cast a grown up version of baby Robin for s7. This fic will mainly ignore what's been going on in S7. 
> 
> I use Robyn to distinguish baby!Robin from her father.
> 
> To make this fic even MORE painful, try listening to one of the following songs while you read:  
> -Little Bird, Little Bird by Elizabeth Mitchell  
> -Telephone Wire from Fun Home  
> -Dear Theodosia from Hamilton  
> -Chasing Cars by The Wind and the Wave

Robyn was in the middle of grinding up the rose thorns when she saw him lean against the door jamb. She clenched her jaw and maybe applied a little bit too much force to slicing the pomegranate seeds in half. She watched him flinch and step forward worriedly, before leaning back against the door jamb. “Henry,” she sighed, putting down her potion mixture. “I can’t think when you’re watching me like that. I thought you left with my Moms to go to the cemetery.”

“I’m going to go after I see Killian and Emma,” Henry replied, coming to sit down next to her. “I just thought maybe you’d want some company before they got back.”

“Look, I know you’re on a mission from Mom to get me to leave the house today or whatever, but it’s not happening, okay? So just leave me alone. I’m fine.”

“Your Moms are worried about you,” Henry murmured, leaning against the door jamb. “They don’t want you hanging out in Zelena’s magic room all day today. They’re gonna go visit your Dad’s grave, Robyn. If you want to join them.”

“It’s just a stupid potion, it’s really not a big deal, Henry,” Robyn sighed moodily. “I know what I’m doing.” She forcefully split an eye of newt, scowling at the table when she didn’t hear Henry’s footsteps immediately retreat. “No, I don’t want to go to Robin Hood’s grave.” She continued to glare down at the table, hoping her oldest brother would get the hint when she didn’t turn to face him.

He frowned and put a hand on her shoulder, in an attempt to be supportive. She rolled her eyes, shrugging her brother’s hand off of her shoulder.

“I’m fine,” she said through gritted teeth. “As you heard me tell our mom and my mom.” Henry opened his mouth to respond and she added with a little more vigor, “Don’t tell me: Mom sent you down here to keep an eye on me while I’m making potions so I don’t get hurt. I’m not a child anymore. I know what I’m doing.”

“She doesn’t want you to be alone on Father’s Day,” Henry said patiently, looking down at her. Robyn kept working and Henry sighed. “You could come with me to Emma’s house. I’m sure Killian would love to have us _both_ there.”

“Yeah, yeah, there’s no need to say _both_ like it’s supposed to mean something,” she muttered, aggressively. “Have fun with your parents. I’m working on a potion. Mama says she’ll teach me some more advanced magic if I get this right.”

“You could go see Alice. It might help to be with your best friend today,” Henry offered gently.

Something lurched in Robyn’s stomach when Henry called Alice her best friend. None of their families knew, yet, but it still felt like a gut punch to hear Henry refer to Alice as her “best friend”. 

Robyn wasn’t sure why she couldn’t tell them. There was some roadblock, something that kept her from telling her. She knew about Ruby and Mulan and Dorothy and so many others that were just like her. But Robyn was still petrified of telling her family, afraid that she would be the exception to their tolerance and love. “I’m fine,” she said gruffly, trying to divert the conversation away from Alice.

Henry sighed softly, gently putting his hand on her shoulder. “Hey, little bird, look at me,” he insisted, sitting next to her. She looked up at the use of her childhood nickname. His smile wavered a little bit as he said, “It’s okay to miss him, y’know. I miss him too. Every single day.”

Like this wasn’t the billionth time she’d heard it today. But at least he wasn’t focused on Alice anymore.

But of course, now they were talking about the _one other thing_ she didn’t want to talk about.

“You don’t have to do this,” she told him with a scoff. “You’re almost thirty years old. You don’t need to do everything that Mom tells you.” Henry raised his eyebrow at her and Robyn picked at a stray thread on her sleeve, not wanting to look at him.

“This isn’t about Mom, and what Mom wants,” he explained patiently, gently rubbing her back. “This is making sure my little sister is okay.”

“Well, I’m fine. It’s not like I knew him or anything,” Robyn replied, her voice catching for a moment before she crossed her arms. “How can you miss someone you’ve never met? No point in celebrating Father’s Day when you’ve never had a Dad. And Killian has his own kids, and I’m not one of them.”

“I missed Emma before I met her,” Henry said softly. “You’re allowed to miss him, little bird. No one would blame you.”

“I won’t ever get to meet him,” she told him, looking down. “So…so there’s just no point in letting myself miss him.”

Henry wrapped his arms around her and she buried her face in his brother’s shoulder. “You sure you don’t want to come with me?” he asked into her hair.  She shook her head, trying to swallow the lump in her throat. “I’m sure your Moms would love for you to join them, if you felt up to it.”

“This day is for them and Roland and for you,” Robyn replied, wriggling out of his grasp to go back to her potion making. Her lip trembled as she internally chastised herself for letting herself feel anything about Robin Hood. “He was your Dad and Roland’s dad. But not mine…he never got the chance to be my Dad, and I don’t…I don’t want to spend the whole day being reminded of that. I’ve done pretty well with two Moms.”

Henry smiled sympathetically. “Okay,” he said softly. “If you change your mind, call me, okay?”

She nodded, clenching her jaw to not to look weak in front of her older brother. “Okay, bye, Henry,” Robyn said, rolling her eyes, as he stared her down. She whipped around and stared him down. “Mom said if I mastered this, I could start working on more advanced potions like fire breath potions or maybe even fireballs. So that’s what I’m gonna work on today. I’m fine.”

“Okay,” Henry called over his shoulder, heading downstairs and out the door.

Robyn sighed and went back to her task with renewed vigor. She was still simmering with rage at her brother’s attitude and the look on his face. “Who does he think he is?” she muttered, pouring the chopped-up eye newts into her cauldron. “He’s got a Dad. And like seven Moms. He knew Robin Hood for crying out loud…”

Her phone beeped, showing she had a text message from her girlfriend. “Hey, just saw your moms on the way to the cemetery. Saw you weren’t with them. Everything okay?”

A few tears fell into the cauldron and she rubbed her eyes irritably. “Mom needs to clean in here,” she said haughtily to no one in particular. “All the stupid dust is making my eyes water.” In response, she texted back, “Yep. I’m fucking peachy, Alice. I really wish everyone would stop asking me that.” 

“Am I gonna see you at Granny’s?” Through the phone, she could hear her girlfriend’s hopeful voice.

“Nope, but you’ll see Henry.”

“Papa says your Dad wouldn’t want that.”

“Well, my Papa isn’t here to tell me that, now is he?” Against her better judgment, Robyn threw her phone across the room, trying not to feel too satisfied when she heard the sound of plastic hitting the wall. It didn’t sound too broken, it was nothing she wouldn’t be able to fix once she was done with her potion.

Still. How could Alice even use her father to bribe her into doing things?

_It’s not like she had known him either. Just who does she think she is?_

Forgetting that most cardinal of rules, Robyn waved her hand to do a little bit of magic while her emotions were out of control. Suddenly, all the bottles came flying off the shelf above her head, pouring themselves into the cauldron.

A swirling portal opened up at her feet and sucked Robyn in. She clutched desperately at the ground, screaming for help for her mothers, for anyone to come and help me. “Mama! Henry! Roland! Someone help me!” For a brief moment, she thought she had gained purchase on the leg of the table, but the gravitational pull of the portal was far too strong. 

_I guess I’ll see you sooner than I thought_ , Robyn thought, squeezing her eyes shut.

The portal closed above her, leaving an empty room and hundreds of destroyed potion materials behind.

* * *

“This way! Over here!” a voice called. “The magic came from over here!”

_Where am I?_

Robyn groaned and leaned her head back against the dirt and didn’t open her eyes. A clatter of hooves sounded close by and the sound of men’s voices became louder and louder. She closed her eyes and waved her hand, quickly changing her appearance.

She knew from Aunt Emma and Uncle Killian’s story that it was imperative that she not disrupt the timeline.

“Miss? Miss, are you okay?” There was a gentle hand on her shoulder and her eyes weakly fluttered open. A man with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes looking down. “Miss? Can you hear me?”

“Yeah,” she rasped, sitting up, rubbing her forehead. She smiled weakly and nodded at the man when he offered her a canteen of water. “I…I…there was a magic blast…I don’t know what happened.”

“Aye,” another man, darker hair and a more imperious tone, spoke this time. “This is not the same magic as before, though it may be connected to the arrival of the Savior.” This man nodded to her as well. “My name is Arthur, and I am king of Camelot. You are most welcome here while you figure out what happened to you.”

_Well that helps me figure out where I am._

Robyn, her head still swimming, managed a curtsey. “Thank you, your Highness for your kindness,” she mumbled, bowing her head, squeezing her eyes shut. “My name is…is Wren, sir.”

“Come, Sir Morgan,” Arthur ordered the first man. “Let’s get Wren back to the castle. Perhaps the Savior, Regina, can help her find out what happened to her.”

_Regina? The Savior?_

Robyn gulped, and her eyes widened in realization. Not only did she know where she was: she knew _when_ she was. 

That doesn’t mean that she was at all prepared when the first person she saw in the courtyards of Camelot was her father.

She was even less prepared when he seemed to look right through her.

* * *

Robyn mostly stayed out of their way.

Mostly.

The glamour spell helped her fit in, though she felt uncomfortable and strange every time she accidentally took a look in the mirror.

But that hardly mattered when she was absolutely miserable.

She had been at the ball when her father had been stabbed, though she knew he wasn’t going to die there. She saw her brother’s first dance with a girl. She saw the swell of her mother’s stomach.

Her family was right there, but they didn’t even know.

Every so often she’d try to catch the eye of Emma, Regina, someone who would know who she was, and try to help her. But they were all so focused on trying to get Emma back to herself that they didn’t really seem to care about everyone else.

She found herself missing Alice like crazy. Every time something happened, she wanted to call up her girlfriend and tell her everything. Here her reassuring voice that things would work out all right in the end. Hear maybe a joke or two. 

But she was completely and utterly alone.

Just like Zelena.

Robyn saw how horribly they treated her mother, and there were so many times where all she wanted to do was run forward and hug her mother tightly, and perhaps get some comfort in return. But she couldn’t because her mother didn’t even know who she was.

She knew why they were treating her mother this way, knew the circumstances of her birth from whispering conversations and pestering Henry. But it cut her deeply to see her before all their healing had taken place.

Still, she made herself useful as a serving girl around the castle. Whenever she got a free moment with her mother, she would talk to the room as she cleaned. She could hear her mother huff in annoyance at these attempts and roll her eyes, doing everything in her power to ignore Robyn’s presence.

On those days, Robyn would go back to the archery rings and practice shooting and pretend that the shaking of her shoulders was from muscle exhaustion. Each arrow she fired just came up short at the target. “Damn it!” she hissed, even though it had nothing to do with the arrows.

“You’re not drawing back far enough. That’s why you’re not getting the distance you want to the shot.”

Robyn started, the arrow completely missing the target as she wheeled around. She was briefly ready for a fight, until she saw him. She felt like someone punched her in the gut and she just stared for a moment, a little slack-jawed.

“Is there something on my face?” Robin Hood prompted after a few minutes of this staring.

She blushed and shook her head. “No, no, no,” she said, trying to get the shakiness to leave her voice. “I, um…forgive me. It’s not every day that you meet _the_ Robin Hood.”

“So you’ve heard of me,” her father said, surprised. “Well, it’s nice to know that my reputation precedes me.” He laughed heartily and bowed. Robyn didn’t even smile, trying her hardest to rise the feeling of...something that washed over her and threatened to choke her. “What have you heard?”

“Steal from the rich, give to the poor, that kind of thing,” she muttered, finding it hard to look at him directly. She was starting to see why her moms always encouraged her to cry and let her emotions out regularly, rather than bottle them up for special occasions.

“Are you okay?” he asked worriedly, stepping forward to approach her. “I heard from some of the knights that you’d been found in the forest that you’d been alone and that you don’t know where your family is.”

“I’m fine,” she said with a shrug, crossing her arms in front of her as she stepped back. She gave her head an irritable shake, trying to clear it of the thoughts swarming her head. “Just…frustrated with this stupid bow and arrow.”

Robin Hood nodded and stopped in his tracks. “I can help you,” he said, nodding to the bow and arrow. “If you’d like.” She nodded, glad to focus on something else, and he came over to correct her stance. “Shoulders back,” he instructed gently. “Don’t yank back. Pull like you’re using the force to keep it upright.” He nodded and watched as she corrected herself. “I’m surprised whoever taught this to you never told you that.”

“I kind of taught myself,” Robyn admitted with a grimace. “Nobody really wanted to put a bow and arrow in my hands so I just…did.” 

“Remarkable for someone self-taught,” Robin Hood praised and she felt something blossom within her chest. “I have a daughter now,” he confessed. “I can’t wait to teach her how to shoot bows and arrows.”  
  
The feeling that blossomed in her chest quickly died.

* * *

“And I was thinking that I could take Wren out hunting while you—” Robin said eagerly. 

“Who?” Regina asked, confusedly. Zelena, from behind Regina, seemed to ask the same thing with only her facial expression.

“Um, me,” Robyn said quietly, piping up from the back of the room. Her father and both her mothers seemed to turn and look at her at the same time. “He’s, uh, been teaching me how to shoot bows and arrows and stuff. We were gonna practice.” She rocked nervously back and forth on her heels.

“Zelena’s serving girl?” Regina asked. “You want to take Zelena’s serving girl out hunting with you? Have you lost your mind?”

Zelena seemed to make the same face as her sister yet again.

Robyn ducked her head, unable to take much more of it. “Forget it,” she mumbled. “You’re off the hook. You don’t have to do it. It was a stupid idea anyway.” She turned before anyone could even respond and bolted out of the room.

She wasn’t even sure how she made it back to her room, but the next thing she knew, she was curled up on her bed, gritting her teeth together. The sheets felt wrong, and her mothers didn’t even recognize her. And as each day passed, seeing how completely disinterested her family was in her, she had less and less hope that she was ever going to get home.

_Do they even miss me?_ she wondered. _Do they even know I’m gone?_

She gripped the blankets tighter, feeling lost and overwhelmed. Robyn felt the bed dip beside her, and a gentle hand came to rest upon her shoulder. “Don’t you have better things to do?” she mumbled, not wanting to look at Robin Hood yet again. “They’re right, you know. I’m just some serving girl with no family. You’re the husband of the Savior.”

“Regina’s not my wife,” Robin Hood chuckled. “Even if we do argue like an old married couple. Soon, I hope. My first wife, my son Roland’s mother, died not that long ago.” His face softened gently. “And your mother? What can you tell me about her?”

“What?” Robin asked, rolling over to face him. “Why do you want to know about my mother?”

“I suspect that being without your family these past few weeks has been quite hard,” Robin Hood said sympathetically. Robyn sat up, drawing her body away from his touch. “So I thought maybe telling me about them would help,” he said gently, moving his hand away when he saw how uncomfortable she was.  

“Could we do it while we go hunting?” Robyn asked hopefully. “You did say my form needed a lot of work, right?”

Robin Hood grinned at her.

* * *

“So are you from Camelot?” Robin Hood asked as they trekked through the forest together. 

“No,” Robyn replied honestly, ducking under a branch so that they could walk around. “I was swept up into a portal unexpectedly. And when I woke up, I was here.”

“Yes, that is how portals often work,” Robin said wryly.

Robyn let out a little chuckle in spite of herself. “Yeah, I guess so,” she said, unable to help the fond little smile that crossed her face. A rustle ahead of them had Robyn eagerly drawing out her bow. A young buck was grazing just a few hundred yards ahead of them. “I’ve got this.”

“Be careful,” her father murmured. “Bucks are dangerous. If you miss, be prepared to run.”

Robyn nodded, drawing her arrow back. “I’m too far back,” she mumbled. “I’m going to move forward.”

“No, don’t—” Her father started, but by then it was too late. A loud crack sounded through the trees, and Robyn didn’t even want to look at the broken branch underneath her foot. 

The buck’s head jerked sideways, looking at Robyn and her father.

“Back away slowly, keep looking at the deer,” Robin Hood instructed out of the corner of his mouth. “And put the bow away.”

Robyn nodded, trembling as she did so. She felt like she could barely breathe as she stepped back.

Silence hung in the air as they kept moving backward, the deer never breaking eye contact as he watched them. Suddenly, it tilted its head back and let out a cry. Robin Hood tensed and swore.

“What? What is it?” Robyn asked, trying not to panic.

“Climb that tree, now!” Robin ordered. “And don’t come down until the coast is clear!” He all but shoved her toward the nearest tree and urged her up it. Robin began climbing frantically, only to stop when she heard the familiar taut of the bow. It was barely audible over the sounds of the deer that kept charging closer and closer.

“Keep climbing, Wren,” he ordered, aiming the bow at the deer.

Shakily, she did as she was told, climbing up the tree. There was a loud thud, and her hand slipped. She looked down, seeing the deer lying dead upon the forest floor, and couldn’t see her father. “No!” she cried, practically skidding back down the tree.

Her breath came out in short, terrified gasps. Where had he gone? In her mounting panic, the glamor spell began to fade. “Robin!” she called, standing by the deer. “Robin?” A rustle in the bushes caught her by surprise. “Oh, there you are!” she gasped in relief. “I thought it had got you and I—”

But he did not recognize her. His bow was drawn back, at her this time, his face set into a look of grim suspicion. “What have you done with Wren?”

“I am Wren!” she exclaimed. “Well, not really, I made her up, she wasn’t real..”

A dark snarl took over her father’s face and he stepped closer. “I’ve had this done to me before and I will not stand for it again!” 

“I know!” Robyn cried, taking a step back. “Your wife…your first wife…my mom pretended to be her, right?”

Robin looked again into the blue-green eyes that were pleading with him to understand. And then, as if struck by lightning, it hit him. “You’re…you’re my daughter,” he said slowly.

She nodded, trembling from head to toe. Robyn couldn’t read her father’s expression. “I…is that okay?” she asked in a small voice. “I know I shouldn’t be here. I got swept up in a time traveling spell, and I ended up here, and I’ve been here for weeks, or it feels like weeks here, and I didn’t—”

Her father pulled her into a hug before she could finish, his bow clattering to the ground.

She knew it wasn’t the first time he’d ever held her, but it was the first time she could remember ever being held by him.

Her hands tightened in his shirt and she choked out, “ _Papa_.”

“Shh, shh, it’s all right. Papa’s here, little one. It’s okay. Your Papa is right here…” Robin whispered, cupping his hand over the back of her head. She sobbed into her father’s shirt, clinging to him desperately as he pulled her in closer. “It’s okay. You’re safe. I’m right here. I’ll always be right here.”

The irony wasn’t lost on her, and she cried harder, as he rocked her back and forth in his arms. He whispered words in her ear that she wished she had gotten to know her whole life.

But she just had this one moment.

She settled down eventually, still curled up against the man she would’ve loved to see more of every day. Robyn looked up at him, wiping her eyes. “Sorry,” she mumbled.

“Don’t be,” Robin whispered, kissing her forehead. “You’ve been out here alone, so close to a family that doesn’t recognize you, but you’ve known your whole life.” He smiled down at her, his gaze filled with love and pride. His thumb came to brush an errant tear. “It’s all right to be afraid. In fact, I’d be more worried if you weren’t afraid.”

She wrapped her arms around him again, desperate for the one hug that she wouldn’t get on her journey back home. He tightened his grip around her and rubbed her back gently, shushing her softly. “I missed you,” she whimpered, her breath hitching as she clung to him.

“I’m sure I miss you too, little bird,” he murmured softly. Robyn looked up at him in surprise. How could he possibly have known her nickname? “I call you that now because you chirp like a little bird when you talk to us. I’m guessing we don’t really use it much anymore, huh?”

Robyn pressed in closer, squeezing her eyes shut. “Everyone still calls me that, even my girlfriend,” she laughed wetly.

“Girlfriend?” her father prompted gently.

_Crap._

She froze, jerking her head up. Robyn took a step back, out of her father’s embrace, ready for to backtrack, to cover it up. But she nearly broke down again when she saw the kind and understanding look in his eyes.

“I take it you haven’t told me yet?” Robin asked softly.

She shook her head, unable to choke down the lump that had taken residence in her throat. “I didn’t know what you’d say, I didn’t know what anyone would say,” she said, her voice wavering. _I thought about going to your grave so many times, but it felt so stupid. I should’ve visited you more. I’m so sorry._

“When you’re ready, I’ll be okay with it,” he promised, opening his arms back up to her. She hugged him again tightly, shaking from head to toe. “No matter who you are, I’ll always love you, okay? And so will Regina. So just know that when you go back, you have nothing to be afraid of.”

And suddenly, she understood why Henry missed Emma before they’d even met. Even though she was loved and cared for by Zelena in every imaginable way, there was still something profound in being able to share this moment with her father. “I love you, Dad,” Robyn whispered, clinging to him. “I love you so much. E-even when I tell you I hate you, I really don’t, okay?”

For a moment, she almost told him: _when Mom goes to take me back from Zelena when Hades comes to town, don’t go with her. Let her and Emma take care of it. Regina will get me back to you, I swear she will. Just don’t go, Papa._

And she was briefly greeted with a future where Henry did not have one of his mothers, where her father was missing his other half, where her other mother was lost and abandoned again, where her brother could not even look at her without remembering Regina…

“We must be in some sort of fight right now for you to be this upset at seeing me,” Robin teased her gently, rubbing her back. She let out a wet laugh, resting her head on his shoulder, the thoughts of the “what ifs” and “could never be” slowly fading from her mind. “You’re still my little bird, even if we’re fighting. You’ll always be my little bird.”

As he kissed her forehead, a soft rainbow light shone around her, and a portal opened at her feet.

“See?” Robin smiled warmly at her, wiping a lone tear from her cheek. “Now think of home, and I’ll see you soon.”

_But you won’t,_ she thought sadly. Robyn stood there, the swirling portal at her feet, looking at her father for the last time. There was so much she wanted to tell him, that there just wasn’t enough time for. Robyn opened her mouth to say something, anything, but nothing came out.

So she bit her lip, and looked down. Robin Hood sighed sadly, and when Robyn looked up, she saw a look of understanding pass through her father’s eyes.

He pulled her close to him again, looking for one last hug. She crushed her forehead tightly against his.

_I’ll never get this close again._

“You’ll always be my little bird, and I don’t want you to ever forget that,” he repeated, his own voice wavering. “Now fly on home. Your mother must miss you terribly. And your girlfriend must be worried sick.”

“I won’t.”  Robyn flung her arms around him one more time and squeezed tight. She felt the shudder of her father’s chest as he tried to hold back his own tears. “I love you, Papa,” she croaked out, tightening her grip on his shirt. “Don’t forget, okay?”

“I won’t,” he promised, letting her go. “Now go, before it closes.”

Robyn stepped back and hopped into the portal, trying not to look back over her shoulder. The portal swirled around her while she thought of home, ruffling the leaves on the grass as it closed up.

Killian came bursting through trees not long after, out of breath and ready for a fight. “Mate, you okay? We saw the rainbow cloud from the castle,” he panted. “Where’s the enemy? Is it someone after the Dark One? Or Merlin?” 

“I didn’t see anything,” Robin said with a shrug, putting the arrow back in its quiver.

“Your eyes are all watery,” Killian said suspiciously.

“Allergies?” Robin offered.

* * *

_“Okay. Let’s go save my daughter,” he murmured to Regina, aware of the god that could strike at any moment, and a reckless, grief-stricken savior. A knot formed in his stomach and he was overcome by the image of her red hair and her little smile. He had no exit plan, not for him, not for Regina and not for her._

_Somehow, he had a feeling he wouldn’t need it. At least not for himself._

_He couldn’t give her a lifetime full of memories._

_But he would give his last breath trying to protect her._

* * *

“Robyn, sweetheart, open your eyes,” a voice pleaded above her. She could feel someone else’s hand on her cheek. 

“Huh?” she asked weakly, her eyes fluttering open. She was quickly enveloped in two pairs of arms and she nuzzled into them confusedly.

“We saw the portal, and we rushed back as fast as we could. Are you hurt?” Zelena demanded wildly, eyes wide with fear. She waved her hand and frowned. “How did you make a time travel portal? I’ve only done it once and I didn’t have the same ingredients that I left you with?”

“I don’t know, Mom,” Robyn said in a small voice. “I didn’t mean to scare you both, but I’m okay.”

“Where did you go?” Zelena asked, still running hands all over her daughter, trying to soothe any injury she could have. “Did you bring back any diseases? Do we have to worry about the plague making a reappearance?”

“We can figure it out later,” Regina murmured, her hand rubbing Robyn’s back. “Right now, I think we should go join Emma and Killian at Granny’s and get something to eat. How does that sound?” She looked down at Robyn and Robyn nodded.

“Yeah, I’m kind of hungry,” Robyn said softly.

“Well you can eat with the Swan-Jones-Charming brood,” Zelena huffed. “I’m going to clean up the mess our daughter made and figure out how she was able to open a time portal with rose thorns, eye of newt and a copper cauldron.”

Regina let out something of a laugh and brushed some more dirt off Robyn’s dress. The two began walking to Granny’s together, despite the heat of the day. It was quiet for a few minutes before Regina pulled her close. “I’m glad you’re okay, little bird,” she whispered in a choked-up voice. “I thought we lost you like we lost…”

“I know,” Robyn whispered, hugging her mother back. “But I’m okay, Mama. Really.” She took in a deep breath before asking softly, “Can you tell me what he was like? I mean you’ve told me every story you’ve ever could about him, but…but what was he like? Mom won’t, and I get the feeling that he didn’t actually like Mom all that much…”

Regina took in a deep and shuddering breath. “Well, he was the first one to call you ‘little bird’. He said when you babbled at us, it sounded like chirping,” she offered.

“I know,” Robyn said softly.

“You do?” Regina asked, surprised. “Little bird was the nickname only he and I gave you for the longest time. Your mother and Henry started using it because I was using it.”

“I might’ve met him?” Robyn offered hesitantly. “When I went back it time, I got sent to Camelot when Aunt Emma was the Dark One.” She looked down, somehow expecting that her mother would be disappointed in her. “I only got to talk to him for a little bit.” She closed her eyes when she felt her mother cup her cheek.

“You’re so much like him, you know,” Regina told her affectionately. “In some of the best and worst ways. You’re kind and stubborn. A little bit reckless, but so protective…and you always, always believe the best in people. He would’ve been so proud of you.” Robyn looked up when she heard a hitch in her mother’s breath, but Regina’s eyes were dry.

“Do you think he would’ve been okay with me dating Alice?” Robyn asked, her voice cracking a little, her eyes searching her mother’s. She knew the answer, an answer she’d only gotten after knowing the man for a moment. But she wanted to know what her mother thought.

“Definitely,” Regina murmured, still gently stroking her cheek. “He…he loved you so much. I just wish you’d gotten more time with him. That we’d gotten more time.”

“Me too, Mama. Me too.”


End file.
